Chapter Sixty-Two: Huo Tangsheng’s Secret
Waves rippled across the searing molten lava surrounding them.
Huo Tangsheng cast a casual glance around, unconcerned.
“Hand over the key to the Gluttonous Demon Hall, and I may spare your life,” he said.
His phoenix eyes carried a hint of mischief, a faint, elusive smile playing on his lips as he gazed at the woman bound by three puppets.
Her hands were twisted behind her back by golden-skinned puppets, her voluptuous figure barely concealed. The fiery red feathered robe she wore trailed along the ground, slit high on one side from waist to ankle, revealing long, snowy legs and a slender, willow-like waist that radiated a dangerous allure.
She lifted her gaze to meet Huo Tangsheng’s, her eyes brimming with infinite emotion, lips glistening and seductive, as she spoke, “My lord, ever since your disappearance, not a day has gone by without my thoughts lingering on you. When the Demon Saint Sect fractured, I did everything in my power to protect a squad of your loyalists, establishing the Vermin Manor and praying nightly for your return!”
The woman in the fiery feathered robe was none other than Wu Feixian, the mistress of Vermin Manor.
A flicker of interest passed across Huo Tangsheng’s face; he smiled, half mocking, “I never knew you were so devoted, Little Wu. Since you still have me in your heart, that means you’re not without your uses.”
Wu Feixian’s enchanting eyes lit up with hope, and she nodded fervently. “Now that you have been reborn through possession, your cultivation has suffered. If I assist you, you will surely reclaim your peak from a millennium ago in no time!”
Huo Tangsheng’s lashes lowered, his thin lips curling into a faint smile. “You make a good point. I do need competent people around me.”
Wu Feixian’s face brightened.
“But,” Huo Tangsheng continued, “if you want me to trust you, you must show true sincerity.”
Wu Feixian instantly understood. Parting her lips, she summoned her nascent soul, which emerged holding a jet-black key.
Her cheeks flushed, she smiled coyly. “My lord, this is the key to the Gluttonous Demon—”
Before she could finish, her eyes widened in shock as her nascent soul was sliced in two by a golden-skinned puppet. Her body hadn't yet reacted before another puppet behind her tore her in half.
The black key fell into Huo Tangsheng’s hand.
He glanced at the crimson blood steaming on the red rocks and chuckled softly. “Little Wu is as mischievous as ever. Dispose of her.”
The three golden-skinned puppets raised their razor-sharp cleavers and hacked at Wu Feixian’s bisected corpse.
At that same moment, a dark red cluster of light shot from one half of her body, but before it could escape, three blades descended in unison, reducing it to dust.
The puppets continued until nothing remained but flesh and pulp, then stiffly withdrew their blades.
Huo Tangsheng had already turned his back.
He sighed indifferently, “It’s just my luck you learned my identity. Compared to being a Saint Lord, living as a genius in the Profound Intent Sect is so much more entertaining. Imagine those righteous cultivators who once loathed me—now they can’t wait to offer their resources for my cultivation. How could I refuse such generosity?”
He shook his head in regret and ordered the golden-skinned puppets to spit out a tongue of flame, burning all traces of the scene.
To the right, a stream of scorching magma flowed down a fissure, pouring into a boiling subterranean pool.
At the bottom of the crimson pool, a strand of purple flame danced beside a young woman’s body.
Curious, the flame darted closer but could not touch her, as though an invisible barrier kept it at bay.
Confused, the purple flame circled her, then suddenly lashed out with a tongue of fire, swallowing her whole.
“Master, the intruders above have left,” said Little Yan within her soul-sea.
Qu Yiqiu’s eyes snapped open. Gazing at the belly of the purple flame, she focused her will and stowed it away, then leapt out of the magma pool.
The purple flame, proud, licked its lips and glanced down at itself—finding nothing.
Puzzled, it looked up, only to discover its beloved magma and flames were gone.
Barely out of the pool, Qu Yiqiu hastily conjured a shield of condensed water around herself.
The heat was unbearable—this place was truly infernal.
Little Yan tossed out the weakened Golden Ghost King. To protect Qu Yiqiu, he had been forced to siphon away some of the Golden Ghost King’s power. Now, the king’s cultivation had plummeted to the twelfth level of Qi Refinement.
While Qu Yiqiu had hidden in the scorching magma, Little Yan had explained everything that had transpired.
During her fusion with the Yin Nether Domain’s energy, Little Yan had warned her not to think of anything, lest spatial chaos erupt from her lack of control.
Ironically, the warning only made her mind more active.
Little Yan watched as Qu Yiqiu, still flushed with heat, stored the Golden Ghost King in the Soul-Suppressing Banner, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
He had thought that colliding spaces and the sudden awakening of spatial translocation would shatter her fragile body to pieces.
But now, it seemed Qu Yiqiu had mastered the spatial translocation art with remarkable ease.
Moreover, in the instant her body was swept through space, she had broken through to the late Foundation Establishment stage.
“Little Yan, do you know how to get out of here?” Even with the water shield and her cultivation at the late Foundation Establishment stage, Qu Yiqiu could still feel the oppressive heat radiating from all sides.
That meant they were deep within the underground magma’s heart.
Normally, in such an extreme environment, no cultivator below the Golden Core stage could survive.
That was why Huo Tangsheng had felt safe dealing with Wu Feixian here.
Little Yan gathered himself, blew a breath of mist from his tiny hand, and wrapped it around Qu Yiqiu.
Instantly, a refreshing coolness enveloped her.
“Master, this is Yin Qi from the Nether Domain. It will temporarily shield you from the heat. I’ll scout ahead, and once I find an exit, I’ll return and guide you out.”
Qu Yiqiu nodded gratefully, “Thank you, Little Yan.”
“It’s my duty,” Little Yan replied, a smile blooming on his face for the first time.
“You’re so beautiful, Little Yan—what a little sprite you are!” Qu Yiqiu praised.
Little Yan froze, then quickly covered his face with his hands, his round eyes darting as he turned away. “I’ll go scout ahead now, Master. If you need me, just call.”
“All right—ah, be careful!” Qu Yiqiu called out mid-sentence as she saw the flustered Little Yan, eyes wobbling, bump into the lava.
Fortunately, the lava did him no harm. He recovered quickly and darted away.
Qu Yiqiu smiled in relief.
Was Little Yan shy? How adorable.
Watching him disappear into the distance, she turned her gaze around to observe her surroundings.
Everywhere, the lava glowed red-hot, with occasional cascades of molten rock pouring from fissures above, forming steaming pools that could scald flesh in an instant.
“What a perfect sacred ground, saturated with the essence of fire!” Qu Yiqiu couldn’t help but murmur in admiration.
As soon as she spoke, she remembered the purple flame that had taunted her in the magma pool. Her eyes lit up, and she immediately sank her awareness into her inner space.
(End of chapter)